Of Taverns, Hot Boys and the Good Ol' Days
by coldfusion9797
Summary: Steve decides an outing to a tavern is necessary. Wanda makes a new friend. Bucky and Steve get totally nostalgic. Set post Civil War. Part five of Avengers on Asgard series.


**AN: This story is part of a series. It follows on from When Sif Met Bucky. Enjoy!**

Steve was sketching when Bucky showed up. It was a drawing of Bucky as he'd been the last time Steve had seen him before he'd gone to war. When they were young and carefree and average. It wasn't intentional, when he'd put pencil to paper that's what came out. He flipped the parchment over before Bucky got close enough to see and fended off the question he saw in Bucky's eyes by asking one of his own.

"Hey Buck, how'd your session go? Make any progress?" He'd have liked to go with Bucky and see for himself but Bucky had been pretty adamant that he could manage on his own so Steve had respected his wishes even though he didn't entirely understand the reasons behind them. Bucky was entitled to some privacy after seventy years of having nothing to call his own.

"Hard to say..." Bucky answered, being deliberately evasive. It wasn't like him to avoid things but if he didn't wanna talk, Steve wasn't gonna push. Steve figured maybe he could do with some cheering up instead.

"You know what? We should go out. Volstagg and Fandral were telling me about this tavern. It's supposed to have the best mead around."

"In case you forgot punk," Bucky pointed out, "alcohol doesn't affect us."

"Maybe not on Earth," Steve smirked, "but I hear this Asgardian stuff packs a real punch."

"Really?" Bucky said, suddenly quite interested in Steve's proposal.

"Gotta be worth a shot, or ten, right?"

"Hell yeah. Let's go!"

They swung by Wanda's room to pick her up. Steve had noticed that she'd been a little withdrawn and figured some socialising with the locals might do her some good. Maybe make Asgard begin to feel a little more like home.

She opened the door, wearing another of those elegant, timeless Asgardian dresses. They made her look older. In a good way. Oh boy... Beside him, Steve could feel Bucky rolling his eyes as though Steve was missing something obvious here, but he didn't have time to figure out what that might be when Wanda was waiting for him to speak.

"So, ah... you feel like going out for a drink?" Steve managed to ask.

"Outside the palace?"

"Yeah, in the city."

"Okay," she smiled, which was nice. All he wanted was for her to be happy.

As she gazed up at him with big, shining eyes, and for some reason Steve couldn't think what to say next.

"So what did you get up to today?" Bucky intervened, rescuing Steve from his own foolishness.

"Reading mostly. Or trying to. Not many Asgardian books are in English or Russian. How is the arm?"

"Stubborn, but hopefully it'll come 'round."

Steve follow silently as Bucky and Wanda chatted away.

It was such a relief that they got along because they were both important to him. Despite all that he'd left behind, having both of them agree to leave Earth with him made Steve feel like the luckiest guy in the galaxy and he really couldn't imagine his life now without either of them now. Bucky was his best friend, almost like an extension of himself. When Bucky hadn't been around it was like a part of him was missing. A part he was determined never to lose again. He just wasn't complete without Bucky by his side. And then there was Wanda. It was her youth, and willingness to embrace change and make the best of things, that he valued. She reminded him of what life was like when it had been full of possibilities. There was more to it than that though. He felt strangely at ease with her, or at least he had until they'd come here but he hoped that was just because they were all adjusting. He wanted to get back to that place with her, where they'd been able to tell each other anything. Where they'd trusted each other with anything. Even training with her had been easy because they just got each other.

Amongst the cobble paths and stone pillars of Asgard they found the place.

So far anything they needed came from the palace. Thor and his father had been generous, soon though they'd have to think about getting jobs to pay their own way. Especially now that Bucky was able again. But that was a problem for another day. Tonight they were just going to enjoy themselves.

The tavern was small, dark and cosy. Lit by torches, the firelight flickered over the many Asgardians gathered together to share a drink and no doubt some tall tales.

He wondered if Volstagg would be here, which was kind of silly considering the man's fondness for food, ale and storytelling. He was bound to show up at some stage.

They headed for the bar, keen to see if they really could get drunk for the first time in over half a century.

"Wanda?" Steve asked.

"I'll stick to water thanks."

"Okay. Buck?"

"Whatever you're having."

Steve ordered the drinks, feeling a little less optimistic than he had when they'd set out. Wanda and Bucky were both out of sorts tonight.

They found a table close to the bar and settled around it.

"The last time I remember us doing anything like this was in Italy. The Commando's wrote themselves off that night." Steve was suddenly struck by the thought that Bucky hadn't joined them that night not because he didn't want to, but because he couldn't. He'd had super serum flowing through his veins. Had he known? Now wasn't the time to ask. They were going for upbeat tonight.

"The brass put you in charge and we decided to go after Hydra," Bucky recalled.

"Yeah..."

"Man we kicked some Nazi ass, didn't we?"

"Damn straight. Now drink up. I think I'm actually starting to feel something."

They swigged their tankards, Steve reaching the bottom of his first. Bucky sat his down a moment later, with a slight frown.

Steve was finally about to ask Bucky what was up, when they were joined by Fandral.

"Nice to see you out and about, and in such exquisite company," he said, sending his most charming smile in Wanda's direction.

She smiled back, though Steve was relieved to see it held nothing more than polite friendliness.

"Settling in for the evening? Next round is on me," Fandral announced striding off towards the bar.

"I'll be back in a minute," Wanda said, pushing her chair back and standing up.

"Everything alright?" Steve enquired.

"Restroom..."

"Okay." Steve watched thoughtfully as she disappeared into the crowd, before turning his attention back to Bucky.

On the surface Bucky appeared to be okay but Steve could tell something was bothering him and there was one thing that Steve knew had always cheered Bucky up in the past.

"So who's your pick for this evening Buck?" Steve prompted, looking around to scope out the talent. It was almost a role reversal. Back in the day, Bucky'd always been trying to set him up with one girl or another.

"Hadn't really thought about it," Bucky dismissed, but Steve wasn't ready to give up that easily. Across the room he spotted an attractive brunette who'd struck up a conversation with Wanda. There was a positive already.

"What about her? She's pretty." Bucky looked in the direction Steve had indicated, a frown settling on his face.

"Probably not the best idea."

"Why not? Wait, do you know her? You making trouble already?" Steve teased.

Just then Wanda and the brunette looked over in their direction. Wanda looked happy enough, but not her friend when she realised who she was looking at.

"Oh man," Steve said, "she is sending daggers your way. You turn her down already?"

"Not quite. I might've kissed her."

"Yeah? Well she doesn't look too happy about it. You a bit out of practice, pal?"

"Don't be stupid. It was a great kiss. She was totally into it at first, then she shoved me off and called me a bilgesnipe."

"What the hell is a bilgesnipe?" Steve wondered.

"That's what I said. How the hell should I know? But it's definitely something you don't want kissing you. She also said I was vile and artless."

"Well it's true you can't draw for shit," Steve laughed into his mead. It was hard not to be a little gleeful about Bucky being knocked back, in the past Bucky'd had his pick of all the girls in New York, while Steve had had to be content with tagging along. There was only one time he could ever recall a girl looking at him rather than Bucky. God he missed Peggy...

Steve was jolted out of the melancholy thought by a cry of victory. Fandral had returned from the bar with company.

"Aha! So the Midgardian decided to take my advice!" Volstagg bellowed, giving him a hearty thump on the back. It actually rocked him forward because these Asgardians were just as strong as he and Bucky were.

"Yeah," Steve grinned, trying not to spill his drink. "It's been too damn long since I was drunk."

"Drunk? Drunk! You're not even merry, my friend." Volstagg signalled for service. "Another round and keep them coming!" he called to a passing the barmaid, who obliged by plonking four full tankards down on the table in front of them.

"There is only one way to enjoy a hearty mead," Volstagg declared, raising his own and downing it's contents in one go. He slammed his empty cup down. "And that my friends is how it is done."

Steve and Bucky shared a glance.

"When in Rome..." Bucky shrugged and they both picked up their drinks and drained them.

"Excellent," Volstagg beamed. "A dozen more like that and we'll be on our way to some real merriment."

xxx

Sensing that the evening was about to descend into a sea of booze and testosterone Wanda decided to remove herself from the vicinity. If the boys wanted to drink themselves stupid, that was their prerogative. She wasn't going to join them, apart from not feeling like it, she couldn't afford to lose control like that. She excused herself with some vague excuse about finding a restroom.

Away from them, she looked around the room, wondering if they'd even notice if she left the bar altogether when her eyes landed on a dark-haired woman that stood out from the crowd. Most women on Asgard seemed to be subservient to some degree, but not this one. She looked strong and independent, dressed in black leather pants and a long burgundy top. The look was still elegant and feminine but not archaic. Wanda envied her. She was fed up with draped necklines and flowing skirts. What wouldn't she give for a mini and some thigh-highs? Or pants. Pants she could handle. This woman looked like someone she could relate to. Someone she could learn from. Someone who knew where to shop.

Wanda decided to introduce herself. If Asgard really was to be their new home she had to start somewhere. She wondered if she should take a peek into the woman's mind but decided against it. It was an invasion of privacy and this was not a battlefield. Hopefully.

She mustered up the friendliest smile she could, considering her depressed mood lately.

"Hi, I'm Wanda."

"You're not from around here," the woman observed. "You're one of Thor's Midgardian friends?"

"Yes," Wanda agreed, reluctant to elaborate because she was unsure how explain she was a criminal, unwelcome on her own planet, but that she had done nothing intentionally wrong. Well at least not since she'd met Steve.

"Welcome to Asgard. I am also a friend of Thor's. I am Sif."

"It is nice to meet you Sif," Wanda smiled, shaking Sif's hand. The Asgardian woman invited her to sit and both their gazes inevitably fell to where Steve and Bucky were sitting.

"Those are your companions?" Sif questioned.

"Yes. Steve and Bucky. It was Steve's idea to come here."

"And do you find them agreeable?" Sif wanted to know. She asked a lot of questions. Wanda wondered what it was she was getting at. She felt the urge to use her powers and check but refrained for the moment. It was a violation she didn't want to commit if she really had hopes of becoming Sif's friend. She decided to answer by offering a simple truth.

"Steve is the best man I have ever known."

"And the other one?" Sif pressed.

"Bucky? He is Steve's best friend," she stated, sure that it explained everything one needed to know about Bucky. "They would do anything for each other."

Sif turned to look at her, obviously unimpressed by the sentiment.

"No accounting for taste then."

"What makes you say that?" Wanda asked with genuine curiosity. Surely nothing about Bucky could be so offensive to a stranger? Especially a female one.

"I met him today. I was asked to assist with his recovery." So they weren't strangers. Now Wanda was intrigued. She didn't know Bucky that well herself, but he'd always been nice to her and knowing how Steve felt about him made her able to trust him.

"I take it you weren't impressed..."

"To say the least. He's very..." Sif replied, narrowing her eyes as she looked across the room at him trying to decide on a word to describe him.

"Fearless?" Wanda supplied.

"To put it politely," Sif agreed. "He'd do well to keep his presumptions to himself."

And then it all fell into place, without the need of any mind reading at all.

"Oh my God," Wanda grinned, "he hit on you."

"Is that what you call it?" Sif sniffed.

This was the closest Wanda had come to having fun since they'd arrived on Asgard and she was keen for it to continue.

"But he is very handsome, no?" she teased.

"That is beside the point," Sif dismissed, though Wanda couldn't help but notice she hadn't disagreed.

"Oh I don't know..." Wanda said, looking appreciatively at Steve. Yeah, she was attracted to him for all sorts of reasons, but she'd be a liar if she said his looks weren't part of it. He was pretty damn gorgeous after all.

Sif gave her a knowing look.

"Steve is your beau."

"What?" Wanda blushed, "no."

"No?" the Asgardian said with a sly smile, "then you wish him to be."

"Who wouldn't?" Wanda pointed out. Sif's smile widened. "I mean..."

"No need to deny it. He is very dashing and an excellent warrior from what Thor tells me."

Now that she was on the brink of this admission, Wanda realised she was sick of pretending. It might actually be a relief to finally have someone to talk to about it. She'd been silently pining after Steve for a while now.

"Okay, I won't, but it's not like anything will ever happen," Wanda sighed, for no matter how damn hot Steve was, she might as well be invisible to him.

Sif finished the rest of her drink and fixed Wanda with a serious look.

"Take it from one who waited too long, tell him how you feel."

"It's not that simple. I couldn't."

"Why not?"

"Steve would never think of me like that, he's too decent. I'm his student. He's my teacher. He'd feel like he was crossing a line." Wanda didn't mention that he also had feelings for someone else.

"But that is not all you are. You are presuming to know his thoughts." She also didn't mention that she wasn't presuming anything. "Are you not friends?" Sif continued. "He did bring you here. You should talk to him."

"I'll think about it."

Sif seemed satisfied with that answer. "What do you say for now we just enjoy the view? Would you like a drink?"

"No, I'm fine."

"Have you tried the wine? You must," Sif insisted, beckoning a barmaid over. "It's Freya's finest."

"Maybe one glass," Wanda allowed, not wanting to be unfriendly.

"Excellent," Sif said, purchasing two drinks. She sat a glass full of burgundy wine in front of Wanda. "It is not only the men that are allowed to have a good time." They touched their glasses together and drank.

It turned out that Sif was right, the wine was very good. And after a second glassful, Wanda felt much more cheerful. The darkness that had burdened her of late had lifted. She and Sif talked about many things from Asgardian customs to Sif's defiance of them. Wanda had been right in her assumption, Sif was a shield-maiden against the conventions of her people and respected for it now. And sometime during the conversation, Sif even agreed to help Wanda restock her wardrobe.

The sound of a stool clattering to the ground drew their attention. Over the din Wanda recognised Bucky's voice.

"Okay buddy, I think you've had enough."

She looked over to see him attempting to coax Steve away from the bar. Steve looked unsteady at best.

"You know," she began, not having failed to notice the interested way Sif had watched him all night. "Bucky is not so bad."

"I suppose it is possible I overreacted," Sif admitted. And remembering Sif's earlier appraisal of Steve, Wanda continued.

"He knows how to fight. He's been a soldier all his life."

"Yes. I had a taste of that."

"Oh? What happened?"

"Suffice it to say that I underestimated him."

"Now you must give me details," Wanda insisted.

Sif looked amusedly into her drink, trying and failing to hold back a smile.

"I may have ended up flat on my back."

"Really?" Wanda laughed. "He doesn't waste any time then."

"No..." Sif mused, mellowed somewhat by the wine. "He doesn't..."

"Yeah Steve, Peggy was a real classy dame," Bucky's voice interrupted, drawing Wanda's attention to the fact that they were close. She looked up to see Bucky's blue eyes on her.

"Hey Wanda, are you gonna be okay if I take Steve home?"

Wanda didn't answer immediately. Her head was foggy from the wine and her thoughts were muddled between seeing this different side of Steve and knowing that he was potentially in this state because of his feelings for Peggy. How could she ever hope to compete with a love that strong?

"She'll be safe with me," Sif assured.

"Thanks," Bucky smiled appreciatively, whilst doing an admirable job of keeping Steve upright. For a second she caught a glimpse of Bucky's thoughts, whether that was because she was compromised or he was just projecting that strongly she couldn't tell, but the feeling was something like how she felt about Steve. Regret. Longing. Hopelessness. Wanda worked harder to shut him out.

As she watched them go, a pang of envy shot through her. Whatever happened, she knew they would always have each other. She suddenly missed Pietro terribly.

"Are you alright?" Came Sif's voice through the gloom.

Wanda shook the shadow off as best she could and gave Sif a tentative smile. Just because Steve wasn't interested in her, didn't mean that Sif had to miss out. Bucky was a good guy and deserved some happiness in his life too.

"Couldn't hurt to give him another chance, right?" Wanda ventured. Sif's lip curled in the barest hint of a smile.

"No. Perhaps not," the Asgardian said thoughtfully. "It would be a shame to waste the progress we made."

xxx

"Oh man," Bucky commented, as he deposited Steve onto the bed, "you are one miserable drunk."

Back in Brooklyn, when Steve weighed all of ninety pounds, two beers had been enough to write him off. He'd had a substantial amount more than that tonight but the effect was the same. Surprisingly Bucky was only tipsy, not because the alcohol affected him any differently but because he'd taken it a fair bit easier than his buddy, knowing that Sif was there and not wanting to make matters worse. It was actually quite shocking to realise how much he cared about her opinion of him.

If there was one thing Bucky Barnes knew about Steve Rogers, it was that he never backed down. Ever. Back in the day, how many times had he needed to step in and stop Steve getting the absolute crap beat out of him by some guy twice his size because Steve just couldn't walk away? Too many. And while he admired Steve's pluckiness, he also had to admit it often strayed towards stupidity. Tonight Steve's inability to back down had shone through, which is why a few drinks had turned into a few more and then a few more after that, until he was determined to drink Volstagg under the table. It was never gonna happen. The Asgardian was unbeatable. He'd had centuries to perfect the art.

The end result of the drinking match was pretty much that Steve had gotten way too drunk and with that much depressant in his system, his inherently sombre nature had inevitably turned his thoughts towards Peggy. It was a tough break, it really was, but they had to try to leave the past behind them. God knew if Bucky ever turned and looked, he might never claw his way back out of the darkness that lay behind him.

Taking his own advice, he focused on the here and now, on Steve who was sobering up quicker than most would because of his increased metabolism, but was definitely still somewhere in the region of shitfaced.

"Here, drink this," Bucky instructed, handing Steve a glass of water. Steve took the glass and drained it but instead of handing the empty glass back, he held it up in front of his face and studied it with an intensity Bucky didn't think it merited. Sure, it was a nice glass, but...

"In the hospital, Peggy had a jug of water by her bed. I'd pour it into a glass for her and hold it up to her lips. I wished there was more I could do..."

"You did plenty," Bucky said, taking the glass from Steve. Steve looked up at him miserably and Bucky sorta knew how he felt. Nothing he ever did for Steve would be enough. All he could do was keep trying, and right now that meant putting him to bed.

"Okay, time for some sleep I think," Bucky said, pulling Steve's boots off, it was the most thoughtful thing he could do for Steve in this moment. "There you go pal," he soothed, giving him an encouraging pat on the leg prompting Steve to swing them up onto the bed and manage to arrange himself into a comfortable position.

"Thanks," he slurred.

"You all good?" Bucky checked one last time.

Steve mumbled something incoherent which Bucky took to mean yes.

"Well okay, I'll see you in the morning."

Bucky turned to leave but Steve grabbed the back of his shirt.

"Buck, wait. Wanna stay? Like when we were kids with the sofa cushions on the floor? You're mum used to yell at us because we wouldn't shut up til four in the morning. Remember? I think her yelling was more likely to wake your dad up than us..."

Bucky was silent for a moment. It was a heartbreakingly innocent memory to be thrown back into. If those kids had known what was coming... But then, in the end they'd found their way back to each other, mostly because Steve was the most persistent person Bucky had ever met.

Since being reunited they hadn't had much of a chance to just talk.

"Fine," Bucky sighed for dramatic effect, "shove over."

A childlike grin lit up Steve's face and he wriggled over, making room for Bucky settle to down beside him. They lay on their backs on top of the covers staring up at the ceiling just like they'd done all those decades ago.

"What did we even used to talk about for that long?" Bucky wondered, trying to remember.

"Anything and everything. Scraps, movies, girls. Even when we were twelve there was always some girl you were crazy about."

"Hey, they were crazy about me too."

"I remember. They weren't exactly lining up around the block to date a five foot four asthmatic."

"You're just a late bloomer Stevie. You got there in the end."

"Yeah, but did I?"

This right here was Steve's problem, and always had been. He used his head too much. He could have any girl he wanted these days. Truth be told, it was impossible to know who he could have dated before the serum because he'd never really tried. How many girls had Bucky tried introducing him to and he'd never even given them a shot? He just had to stop overthinking it so much. In fact, Bucky knew of one that was already sweet on him and for all Steve's brains he was too much of a dummy to see what was right in front of him.

"So Wanda is pretty cool."

"Don't you even think about it, Buck," Steve warned, suddenly sounding a lot closer to sober.

"I didn't mean for me..." Bucky clarified.

"Oh. Well, we're... ah... we're just friends. Besides, what about Sharon?"

"May I remind you that Sharon is on another planet? Seriously Steve, you need to get over these Carter women, it's just getting plain creepy now. What's wrong with Wanda?"

"Wanda's a kid."

"So there's a bit of an age gap. What? Eighty years or so? Who cares? That's nothing compared to a millennium. Give or take a century or two..." Bucky mumbled, mulling over the calculation as he spoke.

"Are you still talking about that Asgardian chick? Is Bucky Barnes in love?" Steve teased.

"Shut up Steve, you're drunk. Anyway I'm always in love, you know that. It just depends on the day of the week as to what her name is."

"Yeah right, that's a load of bull. This is me you're talking to and I don't buy a word of it. She's really got under your skin, hasn't she?" Steve was positively gleeful now the conversation wasn't about him.

"What would you know?" Bucky argued.

"She turned you down, and you wanna know why. Nothing like a challenge, huh?"

"Whatever, punk. I don't need to be psycho analysed by you."

"But you know I'm right."

So what if he was?

"Weren't we talking about your love life?" Bucky deflected. "I don't remember us coming to a conclusion..."

Silence fell between them. Bucky didn't mean to be insensitive, he just wanted Steve to be happy, and no matter how much Steve had loved her, Peggy wasn't the one for him anymore, she was gone. Eventually, Steve would have to accept that.

"Hey Buck, there's something I've been meaning to ask you?"

"Oh yeah?"

Bucky wondered what Steve was going to use as an avoidance tactic now.

"All that time after Washington, I thought you didn't remember but you did. You knew who I was. You remembered that we're friends, so why'd you stay away? Why didn't you come to me?"

"Jesus, Steve. You really are a miserable drunk. No more booze for you. Ever."

Bucky felt the bed shift as Steve rolled onto his side to look at him, blue eyes much clearer and focused now as his enhanced metabolism burned off the effects of the alcohol.

"I'm serious, Bucky," Steve insisted. "Why didn't you?"

"I don't know..."

"You know I'd do anything for you."

"Exactly."

"What does that mean?"

"Just that pretty much what I thought would happen did. I came back into your life and everything else went to shit."

"There isn't anything else. I'm exactly where I wanna be."

"What?" Bucky scoffed, "stuck on an alien planet with a broken winter soldier and your whole life in tatters?"

"Yep," Steve said emphatically. "I never dreamed the line would end up being this long, but here we are. Together. That's what counts."

Bucky still didn't know if he was worth all the trouble, but Steve seemed sure and he trusted Steve, always had, so he guessed he was just gonna have to take his word for it.


End file.
